Former Alaska Airlines pilot speaks out while allegedly trying to shut down the engines

A former Alaska Airlines pilot is speaking out after allegedly attempting to shut down a plane’s engines during a flight last year.

In an interview that aired Friday, August 23, on ABC’s Good Morning AmericaJoseph Emerson recalled the incident on October 22, 2023: Emerson, who was off duty at the time, was sitting in the cockpit jump seat during a flight from Seattle to San Francisco and allegedly attempted to shut down the plane’s engines by pulling the engine ignition levers. (The flight was operated by Horizon Air, a subsidiary of Alaska Airlines.)

Emerson was detained and the two pilots on duty were able to take control of the plane, which was diverted to Portland, where it landed safely. He allegedly took psychoactive mushrooms about 48 hours earlier, he later told investigators, according to district and federal charging documents previously reviewed by PEOPLE.

Emerson explained in the interview that he had difficulty recognizing reality while under the influence of the drug. He took the drug after spending a weekend remembering his best friend Scott, who had died several years ago.

“I thought, ‘This is going to wake me up,'” Emerson said, according to ABC. “I know what these levers do in a real airplane, and I need to wake up from this. You know, this is 30 seconds of my life that I would like to change, but I can’t.”

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, taking psychoactive mushrooms causes people to experience distorted visual and auditory experiences as well as intense emotions.

“It was a feeling of imprisonment, like, ‘Am I trapped on this plane and can I never get home now?'” Emerson added.

When the plane landed, Emerson was arrested by Port of Portland police. He reportedly told them he had not slept in 40 hours and was experiencing a mental health crisis, according to an affidavit filed in Multnomah County District Court.

According to a federal complaint, he also allegedly told investigators at the time that it was the first time he had taken psychoactive mushrooms, adding that he had been suffering from depression for six months prior to the incident.

Following the incident, which resulted in no injuries, Emerson was charged with 83 counts of attempted murder, 83 counts of reckless endangerment and one count of endangering an aircraft, PEOPLE previously reported. He was also charged by federal prosecutors with endangering a flight crew, but it’s unclear if he will still face that charge.

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However, the attempted murder charge has since been reduced to reckless endangerment, ABC reports. Emerson, who was released from custody last December, has reportedly pleaded not guilty to the charges. It is unclear whether he will face trial.

“I hope that through the trials, when society judges me for what happened, not just the 30 seconds of the event, but my entire experience will be taken into account,” Emerson told ABC. “And I will accept the blame that society places on me.”

If you or someone you know needs mental health help, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.